Showcasing your work online with a professional website is a smart way to sell pieces and land more bookings. But creatives looking to build their own portfolio website have a unique set of needs, which can make it difficult to find which of the most popular website builders are the best for creatives and photographers. We set out to answer just that by analyzing over a dozen of the top site builders across a variety of metrics that matter most to you.
Best Website Builders for Photographers at a Glance
Squarespace | Constant Contact | Weebly | GoDaddy | Bluehost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Best for: Best overall for portfolio sites | Best for: Those showcasing large portfolios | Best for: Selling physical and digital works online | Best for: Creatives who want to accept bookings online | Best for: Creatives who plan to eventually use WordPress |
Standout features: | Standout features: | Standout features: | Standout features: | Standout features: |
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Looking for something more specific? Try one of these…
- Don’t quite need specific features for creatives? Check out the best overall website builders for any industry.
- Best free website builder: It shouldn’t be a surprise to see WordPress high on the list—it’s also the biggest on the market—but you may prefer one of the other best free website builders on our list.
- Best real estate site builders: Real estate agents need specific features, and we found the best real estate site builders that cover your needs.
How We Evaluated the Website Builders for Creatives
When searching for the best website builder for photographers and creatives, there are specific features and variables to consider. To do this, we analyzed dozens of the top all-in-one website builders on a variety of factors, including those that matter most when building a portfolio website to showcase—if not sell—your work. Get detailed information on our evaluation criteria by clicking the tabs below.
25% of Overall Score
A great website doesn’t have to be expensive. To help find the most affordable site builders, we analyzed each based on affordability across both standard and ecommerce plans, factoring in the price with a standard 12-month contract as well as month-to-month. Additionally, we looked at whether providers offer a money-back guarantee to give you the peace of mind that if you try it but don’t like it, you won’t be out any money.
25% of Overall Score
To qualify pricing further and to ensure that you’re not just getting the most affordable plan, but the best value for your money, we considered what you actually receive for the price you pay. To do this, we focused on which providers offer the most storage, as portfolio websites tend to be content-heavy and therefore use a lot of storage space. We also looked at bandwidth, as well as extras, such as a free domain and a free SSL certificate.
15% of Overall Score
Creatives building a website have a unique set of needs. To help you find the best website builder, we factored in the ability to sell online without requiring a premium ecommerce plan for those looking to sell digital and physical products, a built-in appointment booking system for those looking to allow clients to book sessions from their site, the ability to create gated content (e.g., for photographers to privately share images with clients), and the option to sell on Instagram.
10% of Overall Score
Not only should your website builder offer the features that you need in an easy-to-use site editing interface, but you want it to enable you to build a visually appealing web design. Providers that offer a variety of professionally designed, prebuilt templates and themes are helpful in building and launching sites with minimal customizations.
5% of Overall Score
If you ever need support, you’ll be happy to have top-notch service that quickly helps to resolve any questions or issues you may face. Of course, support varies from provider to provider, so we considered not only which offer the most responsive and helpful support, but also the channel in which it’s available (e.g., live chat, phone, tickets) and when it’s available (e.g., standard business hours, 24/7) to help you rest assured that help will be there if you need it.
20% of Overall Score
There are just certain things you can’t know about a website builder until you’ve used it, so we incorporated our own first-hand experience using all of these website builders to help determine which really are the best of the best. We included factors such as features and inclusions, value for the price, ease of use, and general popularity.
Now let’s learn more about the best website builder for photographers:
Squarespace: Best Overall Site Builder for Photographers
Squarespace
What We Like
- Unlimited storage and bandwidth
- No coding needed
- Designer templates (all free with any plan)
- Sell online
What's Missing
- It’s one of the pricier options
- No free plan
Features at a Glance
- 15 photographer templates
- 35 portfolio templates
- Built-in social sharing tools
- Sell on Instagram
- Create limited availability labels
- Send abandoned cart recovery emails
- Add a Square POS to sell at pop-ups
Squarespace may as well have been built to be a photography website builder because Squarespace puts design first. It’s an ideal choice for any visual artist. The builder offers award-winning designed templates that pop on the screen. Every element is customizable, so you can make it uniquely yours. Squarespace is a bit expensive, but each plan is full of features to make your site and business thrive.
Standout features for creatives:
- Dozens of templates specifically to showcase photos, art, and creative designs
- Easy-to-use site builder (no coding necessary)
- Unlimited storage and bandwidth, so you can show off all your work
- Mobile responsive designs, so your site looks great on smartphones too
- Use website metrics to track a visitor’s path so you know which of your pages are most popular
Squarespace Tiered Pricing & Plan Inclusions
Personal | Business | Basic Commerce | |
|---|---|---|---|
Price* | $12 per month | $18 per month | $26 per month |
Connect Your Own Domain | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Free Domain Name | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Free SSL Certificate | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Ad-free | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Sell Online | N/A | ✔ | ✔ |
Advanced Ecommerce Features | N/A | N/A | ✔ |
Storage Limit | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
Bandwidth Limit | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
Free Trial Length | 14 days | 14 days | 14 days |
*Paid annually
Designing a Site With Squarespace
Squarespace makes it easy to get started; choose a template, click on “edit,” and then start adding your own content in the easy-to-use builder. If you see an element on the page you want to change, simply double-click on it and a screen pops up with options. There is a slight learning curve with Squarespace’s new editor because it isn’t quite drag-and-drop, but once you get used to its style, you’ll find it’s second nature.
Every template on Squarespace is free with your plan. There are more than 200 from which you can choose, and about 45 of those are designed with creatives in mind. Each design makes good use of white space and has clean lines in mind to showcase your art, photos, or products. Plus, if you decide you like another template better, you can change it and not lose your content.
Learn how easy it is to build your website with Squarespace.
Our Expert Opinion
Overall, Squarespace is the best website builder for photographers because of its thoughtful template design, ecommerce features, easy-to-use editor, and helpful website metrics. You can easily add your social media to your website, so you can reach and connect audiences to spread the word about your work. Whether you want to sell, build an audience, or book appointments for your services, Squarespace is for any artist.
Constant Contact: Best for Photographers With Large Portfolios
Constant Contact
What We Like
- Unlimited storage, making it ideal for large portfolios
- AI-powered website builder
- Sell services or products (digital and physical)
What's Missing
- No free domain
- Transaction fee on each sale (regardless of the plan you choose)
Features at a Glance
- AI-built designs
- Drag-and-drop editor
- AI-powered logo designer
- Email marketing tools
- Built-in shopping cart
- Pop-up marketing tools
Constant Contact is first an email marketing business and a website builder second. You’ll be able to take advantage of Constant Contact’s marketing tools to help you build an email list, as well as analytics to help you make sense of your site’s traffic and audience. Regardless of which plan you choose, you get unlimited storage, so you can post all your photos or art on your site without having to pay extra.
The Constant Contact free trial lets you design your site, add your content, and choose which elements you want on your site, such as a shopping cart. You can sell physical or digital products, or set up your site for services. Constant Contact includes an appointment booking app, which seamlessly integrates with your site. If you don’t already have a domain name, you can purchase one through Constant Contact for $22 per month.
Standout features for creatives:
- Unlimited storage and bandwidth
- Appointment booking feature
- Integrated shopping cart
- Accept payments via PayPal or Stripe
- Email marketing tools
- Mobile-responsive design
- Logo creator
Constant Contact Tiered Pricing & Plan Inclusions
Website Builder | Email | |
|---|---|---|
Price | $10 per month | Starts at $20 per month |
Storage Limit | Unlimited | Unlimited |
Bandwidth Limit* | Unlimited | Unlimited |
Free Domain Name | No | No |
Free SSL Certificate | ✔ | ✔ |
Sell Unlimited Products | ✔ | ✔ |
Product and Inventory Management | ✔ | ✔ |
Local Pickup Option | ✔ | ✔ |
Comprehensive Automated Email Marketing | N/A | ✔ |
*Bandwidth is unlimited unless a site brings in exorbitant traffic, in which case there may be fees.
Designing a Site With Constant Contact
Constant Contact’s website builder is a little bit of an instant website creator. Answer a few questions about what your business is, such as industry and what you intend to sell, if anything. The builder will create a site with images and sections it thinks would be best for your business. Add a gallery and then fill it up with your own images, or you can use the free images from Unsplash.
There are no themes from Constant Contact the way there are with most of the best website builders, but there are layouts and sections. It’s easy to change the layout, images, text, and sections once you get to the editing screen. However, you have to choose the premade layouts—and those are not editable in the builder.
If you don’t already have a logo, you can use Constant Contact’s artificial intelligence (AI)-powered logo creator. Enter your name or business name, and the logo maker will combine shapes, fonts, and elements to automatically create logos. If none of them speaks to you, you’ll have more control over the design if you hire someone at Fiverr to create one for you.
Our Expert Opinion
Constant Contact offers an easy-to-use website builder along with its powerful email marketing features. Every plan includes unlimited storage, so you can upload your whole library of photos or art, making this a fantastic website builder for photographers. It’s a great solution for any creative who expects to use email marketing to stay in touch with their audience.
Weebly: Best for Selling Your Artwork Online
Weebly
What We Like
- Ecommerce by Square with fixed transaction fees
- Easy-to-use site builder editor
- Affordable plans
What's Missing
- No designer themes for ecommerce
- Can’t switch to a regular website easily
Features at a Glance
- One ecommerce theme
- Built-in ecommerce tools from Square
- Sell online with any plan (even the free plan)
- Get a Square reader for pop-up, in-person sales
- 55 total themes if you only create a business website (no ecommerce)
As a website builder for photographers, Weebly is a good choice, especially if you’re selling online. Weebly recently teamed up with Square for ecommerce, so you’ll get all the features of a Square Online account. If you plan to sell prints, other art, or products, you’ll be able to quickly and easily set up an online store.
You can sign up for the free plan and play around with the free features for as long as you’d like. You’ll even be able to sell on the free plan, but you’ll have Square ads on your site, and you can’t use a unique domain name. Upgrade to Professional or Performance to get a free domain, remove Square branding, and get access to features such as digital product sales, unlimited storage, and abandoned cart emails.
Standout features for creatives:
- Seven portfolio themes (if you don’t add ecommerce)
- One theme for ecommerce sites
- Easy-to-use inventory management tools
- Sell digital goods
- Sell on Instagram
- Create coupons and gift cards
- Accept payments via PayPal
- Send abandoned cart reminder emails
Weebly Tiered Pricing & Plan Inclusions
Designing a Site With Weebly
Weebly gives you choice when it comes to types of websites and types of editors. If you go with a small business website, you’ll get the Weebly drag-and-drop editor that is very easy to use. You’ll also be able to choose from 55 designer themes (seven of them are made for portfolio sites). The caveat is that your ecommerce features will be limited.
If you choose to make an online store, you’ll use the Square Online editor, which is also easy to use but has more of a learning curve (it isn’t a true drag-and-drop editor). Also, you won’t have theme choices. An ecommerce site starts with a generic design. The good news is you can change the layout to give your site a little more personality.
Find out how easy it is to make a website using Weebly.
Our Expert Opinion
Weebly offers a handful of portfolio themes that will work well for creatives who just want to showcase their work. However, an online store through Weebly with Ecommerce by Square makes it easy for you to sell your work online. You’ll get inventory management and marketing tools to help you sell, making Weebly an excellent choice for a photographer or artist who wants to sell prints or originals (digital or physical).
GoDaddy: Best for Selling Services With Online Bookings
GoDaddy
What We Like
- Accept payments online
- Includes client management tools
- Send email and text appointment notifications
What's Missing
- No SEO tools on the lowest-priced plan
- Slim ecommerce options
Features at a Glance
- Seven portfolio templates
- One-time appointments available on all plans (except free)
- Integrate your social media accounts
- Send emails from the GoDaddy dashboard
- SEO tools available for Standard plan and up
GoDaddy is a web hosting company that also offers a site builder, portfolio templates, and lots of features that work well for wedding photographers. The Premium plan is perfect for any photographer who wants clients to book appointments on their website. You can also set up your site to accept payments online.
GoDaddy offers a forever-free plan, but you’ll have a lot of GoDaddy ads on it, and your domain name won’t be custom—it will be a subdomain of godaddy.com. However, every paid plan comes with a free domain, secure sockets layer (SSL) certificate, and unlimited bandwidth and storage.
Standout features for creatives:
- Seven portfolio templates
- 16 art and design templates
- Appointment booking feature
- Accept credit cards, PayPal, and Apple Pay online
- Send email and text appointment reminders
GoDaddy Tiered Pricing & Plan Inclusions
Basic | Standard | Premium | |
|---|---|---|---|
Price* | $9.99 per month | $14.99 per month | $19.99 per month |
Storage Limit | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
Bandwidth Limit | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
Social Media Platforms | 1 | 3 | Unlimited |
Free Domain Name | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Free SSL Certificate | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Accept Online Appointments and Bookings | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Accept Payments for Online Appointments | N/A | N/A | ✔ |
Accept Group Bookings | N/A | N/A | ✔ |
Email and Text Appointment Reminders | N/A | N/A | ✔ |
*Paid annually
Designing a Site With GoDaddy
GoDaddy’s website builder is similar to others you may have used. You start by choosing the theme you prefer and then sign up to start your free account. GoDaddy takes the guesswork out of design with color themes and font pairings. If you want to move sections or elements, you can easily do so by clicking and dragging, or using the mini menus to do it.
There are fewer templates available on GoDaddy than other photography website builders, but the designs they do have are clean and modern. The seven portfolio templates emphasize images, making them perfect for wedding and personal photographers. Remember that you can adjust the layout of your website however you’d like to make it look unique compared to the template you started with.
Create a website with GoDaddy in just a handful of steps.
Our Expert Opinion
GoDaddy makes it easy for you to set up a website to show off your photos or art. It’s equally easy to get started accepting appointments, so it’s a great choice for photographers who want to book appointments online. You can also accept payments online, and send your clients email and text appointment reminders with its Premium Plan, making it a great website builder you can grow your business with.
Bluehost: Best for Creating a Custom Portfolio Website
Bluehost
What We Like
- Low-cost hosting plans
- Easy-to-use editor
- Option to install WordPress
What's Missing
- Long terms to lock in low prices
- Themes cost $39 to $69 each
Features at a Glance
- One free theme
- 60 apps to extend the functionality
- Accept bids on pieces
Bluehost is known as a low-cost web hosting solution, and now it offers a website builder, so you can easily design a website without any coding knowledge. You also have the option of using Bluehost as your hosting company and installing WordPress on your site, giving you complete control over your website. Photographers or artists who want to build a custom portfolio website would do well with Bluehost.
It’s important to take note of the terms if you sign up for Bluehost. That $2.95-per-month price is excellent for a website (no ecommerce tools included with that), but you also have to pay upfront for 36 months. When you renew after that term is over, you’ll pay the regular cost, which is about 50% more. Also, the unlimited storage only applies to Plus plans and up—50GB won’t be enough for most photographers and artists who want to display their work on their websites.
Standout features for creatives:
- Extremely low-cost plans
- Plugin library to extend the functionality
- Unlimited storage on most plans
- Sell online
- Ability to install WordPress
Bluehost Tiered Pricing & Plan Inclusions
*Paid upfront for 36-month term
Designing a Site With Bluehost
Bluehost’s website builder can work for photographers who want an easy way to build a website and don’t mind that it’s a basic theme they’ll use. However, Bluehost becomes an even better photography website builder if you install WordPress because you’ll have almost limitless possibilities. There are lots of free WordPress themes and plugins you can use, but it will require a little more technical know-how.
Use Bluehost as your hosting provider and then create a website with WordPress.
Our Expert Opinion
The Bluehost website builder is a great starting point for anyone, but photographers who want a custom solution should consider using WordPress on their Bluehost hosted site. WordPress doesn’t necessarily require coding knowledge, but it does have a much steeper learning curve than other website builders for photographers.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Can I make a photography website for free?
The short answer is, yes. The better answer is, you shouldn’t. A free website is going to have a subdomain (myphotos.hostingcompany.com) and branding from the hosting company, which isn’t a very professional look. However, hosting and photography website builders are surprisingly affordable. Still, take a look at the best free web hosting services.
What’s the best way to sell your photography?
There are several ways to sell your photography, including on your own website. Consider selling to stock image sites. You could also open an Etsy store to sell your art.
How much does it cost to build a photography website?
Depending on your needs, a website can cost less than $3 per month (with Bluehost hosting), or into the thousands. You may need a logo, graphic design, website design, ecommerce hosting and payment processor, or plugins. So, the question is, do you want to go DIY or professional? Learn more about how much a website costs.
Bottom Line
Photographers, artists, and creatives need professional small business websites with ample storage, portfolio templates designed to showcase work, and money-making tools, such as ecommerce or appointment booking systems. Squarespace is the best overall website builder for photographers because it includes award-winning design, all-inclusive plan features for selling your work, and an intuitive website editor.
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- Still think WordPress is cheaper? Think again and check out the real cost of WordPress.
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